“Americans should be able to drink a
peaceful cup of coffee without worrying that a portion of the
company's profits is going to be used to push gay marriage without a
vote from the people,” Brown said in a statement. “This is a
gratuitous leap into a hot button culture war issue; respect for
diversity touted by Starbucks ought to include respecting the diverse
views of all its customers and employees.”

NOM said it would encourage Starbucks
customers to complain to the company.

“Increasingly, gay marriage
extremists are arguing that people known to oppose same-sex marriage
should not be hired, or even, should be fired,” said Jonathan
Baker, head of NOM's Corporate Fairness Project. “Diversity and
tolerance are a two-way street. Having waded into a social issue
where Starbucks has no special competence, the company has an
obligation to reassure its customers, vendors and employees that it
will respect the most important diversity – diversity of opinion.”